Food for Fort + Soft drinks | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/series/food-for-fort+softdrinks
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Food for Fort: chinotto and unsalted butter | Matthew Forthttps://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/aug/12/chinotto-unsalted-butter-matthew-fort
It's a staple of the Italian soft drink market, so why can't I find chinotto in the UK? Plus why do so many recipes tell us to cook with unsalted butter?<p><strong>Many recipes tell you to cook ingredients in unsalted butter, then say to&nbsp;"season with salt and pepper". Since this is clearly not to avoid salinity, what is it that the unsalted butter does that salted does not?</strong><br>Salt in cooking is a hot topic, on which almost everybody seems to have different views, quite often vehemently expressed. The saltiness of salty butter varies – a quick check in my local supermarket produced a confusing range of between 1.4% and 2% by content – and some salted butter makes a virtue of the fact that it contains sea salt crystals. Anyway, if you use unsalted butter, you can season the dish with precisely the amount of salt you want. That's why&nbsp;I always cook with unsalted butter. Having said that, salted butter on a&nbsp;crumpet or with cucumber sandwiches has no equal.</p><p><strong>Chinotto is sold in every milk bar and supermarket in Australia, but I&nbsp;can't track it down in the UK. Pizza&nbsp;just isn't the same without it.</strong><br>Italy is full of citrus mutations (cedro, bergamot, etc), and chinotto is one of these. Its combination of sour acidity and bitterness makes it an essential ingredient in Campari and a host of bitter digestivi, as well as in soft drinks to wash down all sorts of food, not simply pizza. Heaven knows why it's not more widely available here – perhaps it's our aversion to anything that isn't blindingly sweet. You can get it online, but only the San Pellegrino seems to be available – try <a href="http://www.nifeislife.com/pellegrino-chinotto-33cl-p-484.html" title="">nifeislife.com</a>, <a href="http://www.thedrinksmenu.co.uk/alcohol/san_pellegrino_chino_6_pack.html" title="">thedrinksmenu.co.uk</a> and <a href="http://www.natoora.co.uk/shop/drinks/fizzy-drinks/chinotto/prod8521.html" title="">natoora.co.uk</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/aug/12/chinotto-unsalted-butter-matthew-fort">Continue reading...</a>Food & drinkLife and styleSoft drinksFri, 12 Aug 2011 21:59:12 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/aug/12/chinotto-unsalted-butter-matthew-fortPhotograph: Getty ImagesCurl power: Is it really so important to cook with unsalted butter rather than salted? Photograph: Getty ImagesPhotograph: Getty ImagesCurl power: Is it really so important to cook with unsalted butter rather than salted? Photograph: Getty ImagesMatthew Fort2011-08-12T21:59:12Z